I’ve been hearing reports that the Hickory House is closed for renovations….and that it has closed for good. They have another location in Tucker for those of you who are fans of their food.
For tons of you, Hickory House has been a great hangout/gathering place for many many years. I’ve enjoyed some of their cute messages on their sign over the years. I’m always sad to see businesses close…..I called their phone number and unfortunately the recording says they are “closed for business” and to visit their Tucker location. One subscriber called Tucker yesterday and was told Dunwoody is closing for good; another called Tucker today and was told Dunwoody is closed for renovations.
Here’s some fun Old Hickory House trivia that I found on the Dunwoody CVB website:
“Old Hickory House’s BBQ sauce and the Brunswick Stew are old family recipes. Since the restaurant opened in 1953, patrons have eaten over 3 million gallons of their Brunswick Stew and over 10 million gallons sauce have been consumed. When Jimmy Carter was President of the United States, Old Hickory House BBQ and Brunswick Stew were flown to Washington, D.C and prepared in the White House for the President, Rosalyn and their guests. The restaurant is also famous for its delicious Southern breakfast – homemade biscuits, sausage, gravy and country sausage are just a few of the selections.”
Feel free to comment on this post! So many people are interested in this news. Maybe the Dunwoody folks can convince them to definitely renovate and open again! I’m still not 100% clear on whether they are closing for good or not. If any of you know the owner and can have him/her comment that would be awesome!
Some of you have inquired about the Health rating status of Old Hickory House. You can use this link to see for yourself that the most recent rating recorded was an 86: http://atlanta.digitalhealthdepartment.com/dekalb/history.cfm?id=443544
I worked there in the 80’s. Great family owned business Treated us well, from Ann Black, ti Jack
Sign says “Closed for Renovations”. Also others online have said they called their other locations and have confirmed it is just for renovations and not for good!
I was just there on Sunday and there was a sign on the door saying it would be closed for renovations. If I recall it was supposed to reopen sometime during the week.
HH has been a Dunwoody institution for more years than I can recall. Would really miss my pork sandwich & Brunswick stew. Please stay here!
http://dunwoodytalk.blogspot.com/2014/08/old-hickory-house-dunwoodys-manuels.html
It’s very common (for legal reasons) for a restaurant to say they are closing for renovations when they are actually closed. A tenant may renovate per the lease and not be placed into immediate default, but if they “go dark,” then the landlord often has the ability to default them and accelerate rent immediately.
Here is a biz chronicle article saying they’ve closed for good –
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/blog/peachtree-plate/2014/08/dunwoody-s-old-hickory-house-closes.html
They are just remodeling. I spoke to the owner on Sunday. It will be reopened by the weekend.
I called the Old Hickory House in Tucker and she said closed for remodeling. Sure hope so! we would REALLY miss them and all that good home cooking! There is no way they weren’t profitable.
http://www.reporternewspapers.net/2014/08/20/dunwoodys-old-hickory-house-closes-atlanta-business-chronicle-reports/?utm_source=Reporter+Newspapers+Mailing+List&utm_campaign=1f7d732d3c-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_DUN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_dbd6e0112e-1f7d732d3c-406939593
Interesting that the Atlanta Business Chronicle article had been taken down. Thoughts? http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/blog/peachtree-plate/2014/08/dunwoody-s-old-hickory-house-closes.html
I do hope they are just closed for renovations. Hickory House is such a wonderful place to eat. Such a good place to get home cooked breakfast & BBQ.
If you looked at Hickory House’s Health Inspection reports, you would think twice about eating there. It’s been 10 years since I ate there because it was filthy dirty. If they renovate the place, they should start by tearing the place down and start over from scratch.
I just drove by there an hour ago and there was a For Sale sign nailed to one of the front posts on the building.
Hi Audra,
I saw your Aha! Connection post today with a question of whether the Hickory House restaurant closure was permanent or just for renovation. Attached is a photo of the “For Sale” sign on the door that I took tonight. I think this definitely answers the question.
Maybe one of your readers has an interest in a community gathering restaurant and will call the number listed. 🙂
I hope all is well with you and your family. Thanks for your tremendous community service to Dunwoody!
Terry Nall
Dunwoody City Council Member (At Large)
Cell: (404) 915-6693
Email: Terry.Nall@DunwoodyGA.gov
I spoke with the family last night and they said it is, unfortunately, closed
The last thing Dunwoody needs is another bank!
I noticed the for sale sign today. Always seems like a huge crowd. So it’s not from lack of business.
I am with Gail S. Another bank and let’s add another dry cleaners will about do me in. Let’s hope not. A friend suggested IHOP. I could certainly live with that.
I am so very sad that Hickory House will be closing. I have been going there for 25 years!! There food was always good. I did hear that one of managers Ted died of a massive heart attack a few weeks back. He was always so nice and always asked about my children. Everyone was always so polite. I will miss it.!!!!!
Ate there just the other day. The oldies station was on and I said to my family, it could be 2014 or 1974, couldn’t tell. Meant it in a good way and wish Hickory house would stay open. The food was timeless and comforting, not trendy.
Many years ago as a college student I worked in a professional kitchen. Based on the few times I visited HH I’m not surprised that they closed. Service was not consistent, cleanliness was terrible, and the primary ingredient for nearly all dishes was grease. I once ordered corn that arrived in a bowl with so much grease that it looked like soup! HH was coasting on inertia and its regulars who have probably retired to Florida or literally passed on. The menu and their business practices were relics best left in the past.
This new sign says it all: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4945997/IMG_3449.jpg
I had my first job at this Hickory House in the mid-1980s when I was in 8th grade. Back then, I appreciated the chance to work and their willingness to let me work the shorter hours my parents were willing to agree to. Looking back, I appreciate what I learned from the managers an staff while working there even more… honesty, integrity, service, and the dynamics of working as part of a team. I worked there for only a little more than a year before moving on, but those lessons served me well in all I have done professionally since. I am sorry to see it go, and am hopeful that whatever replaces it will carry on their fine traditions of service and community.
That is hilarious!
I first ate at the OHH while my husband & I were dating in 1974.Best I ever had.We went from Marietta to Cumberland Mall location to Days Inn location to Dunwoody.
I can’t believe they are closed for good.We make a trip pretty often from 4 counties away.
I guess I am one of Anon’s “relics” who has not “literally passed on,” but definitely is closer to the Great Unknown than is he. I started going to the HH in the early 60’s, and continued after I moved away to DC area in 1975. Unless you lived in the Buckhead area back then, there simply is no way to describe how intertwined the HH was into the fabric of your life—good and bad. Whenever I came back to Atlanta in the 70s-last few years, after I landed at the airport and picked up a rental car, I went straight back to the HH for that bowl of brunswick stew and the cellophane wrapped crackers that were a must-have with them. So very little of the 1950’s-60’s Atlanta remains, it is a shame, but not a surprise, to see this veritable relic from my past disappear as well. Glad it had the run it did. Jeff
VERY SAD TO LEARN OHH CLOSED. BEEN EATING OHH BBQ SINCE 50’S AS A KID VISITING FORREST PK. HAVE EATEN AT MOST OF THE OTHER LOCATIONS OVER THE YEARS , INCLUDING THE DAY’S INN LOCATION (NEVER AS GOOD AS THE REST), PIEDMONT, BUFORD HWY, AUGUSTA GA., AND EVEN CHARLOTTE, NC(STILL GREAT).
DROVE 20+ MILES OUT OF MY WAY TODAY FOR A COUPLE OF LBS. TO TAKE HOME TO SC. VERY DISAPPOINTED! RESEARCHED OHH ON NET TO LEARN THE STORY.
THANKS TO ALL OHH PEOPLE OVER THE YEARS FOR MAKING MY LOVE FOR BBQ SO PLEASED.
So are there really 28 comments here, many from former employees and not a single recipe shared ? What’s the plan for OHH with only 1 location left ? To take the stew and sauce recipe to the grave with them ? Sheesh